LUBBOCK, TEXAS (RFD NEWS) — Farmers and ranchers are using a broader mix of tools to manage risk as markets, weather, and policy uncertainty continue to shift. A new report from the USDA Economic Research Service shows savings and off-farm income remain the most common risk management strategies on U.S. farms.
The report, authored by USDA economists, examined risk management practices from 1996 through 2020. Producers increasingly rely on a combination of on-farm strategies, crop insurance, marketing contracts, government programs, and longer-term planning tools.
Participation in the Federal Crop Insurance Program has remained relatively steady since 2005, but usage has increased among very large farms while declining among smaller operations. Government payments tied to programs like Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC), Price Loss Coverage (PLC), and Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) reached fewer than 15 percent of farms in most years.
Succession planning remains another weak spot. Fewer than one-third of producers had a formal succession plan in place by 2019, though adoption increased over time and was more common on larger farms.
Farm-Level Takeaway: Diversified risk tools help protect farm income.
Tony St. James, RFD News Markets Specialist
Patrick Gottsch, founder and chairman of RFD-TV, testified before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee in May 2014. Read his full testimony: “Competition in the Video and Broadband Markets: the Proposed Merger of Comcast and Time Warner Cable.”
RFD-TV Founder to Testify Before a U.S. House Judiciary Committee Oversight Hearing on the Proposed Merger of Comcast and Time Warner Cable
RFD-TV is invited to testify before Congress on the proposed Comcast/Time Warner merger on May 8, 2014, in Washington, D.C. RFD-TV Founder & President
Patrick Gottsch will present Rural America’s perspective on Independent Channels and Programmers to the House of Representatives subcommittee.
Schools around the country will soon have to eliminate any posters or billboards advertising unhealthy snacks on campus.
February 26, 2014 11:03 AM
·
The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences recently opened its newest research and education center, once operated by the USDA.
February 07, 2014 11:26 AM
·
Rural Media Group founder Patrick Gottsch shares the substantial number of program schedule changes on RFD-TV, RURAL TV, and FamilyNet coming in 2014 —the most in our company’s history.
December 17, 2013 10:12 AM
·
